Monday, December 7, 2009

Here is Marius Zaromskis facing Jason High for the Dream WW Grand Prix Final which took place on 7/20/09. Zaromskis had already defeated Japanese MMA legend Hayato Sakarai with a nasty head kick and punches earlier that night.

Three months prior, Mario defeated Pride and Shooto veteran Seichi Ikemoto via decision in the first round of the tournament.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

The TUF 10 Finale produced some dramatic KO's and submission victories, a weird ending and an unlikely decision victory. The biggest winner was TUF 10 heavyweight champion Roy Nelson. The 263 pound former IFL Champion was matched up against former football star Brendan Schaub, who played at Colorado in college, Utah Blaze of the arena league and briefly for the Buffalo Bills.

Big Country came out to Weird Al's "I'm Fat" which is a parody of "I'm Bad" by Michael Jackson and let his belly do the talking in the ring. Brendan was the early aggressor, tagging Roy and forcing him to cover up and defend numerous punches. From there, Roy was able to get a takedown and nearly got the fight into his infamous crucifix position.

Brendan was able to scramble and get back to his feet. During the next exchange, Roy threw a massive overhand right that found its mark to Brendan's temple. Brendan crumpled to the canvas and Roy threw a couple follow-ups to seal the first round victory and TUF 10 crown.

In other action, Jon Jones looked athletic, fast and dominating in his performance against Matt Hamill. The extremely long limbed Jones threw front kicks, spinning kicks, and spinning back elbows from southpaw and traditional stances. Midway through the first, Jones nailed Hamill with a massive slam, possibly dislocating Hamill's shoulder.

With full mount, Jones threw wicked ground and pound with amazing quickness. Hamill managed to block many of the strikes with some sneaking threw before Jones threw a 12-6 straight up and down elbow that is illegal. The strike KO'd Hamill, and ref Steve Mazzagatti gave Hamill a DQ win.

Two former college wresting stand-outs Frank Edgar and Matt Veach put on an excellent show. Veach was able to land crowd pleasing slams and use his power. Unfortunately for Veach, eventually Edgar found his mark with right hand sending Veach to the canvas. From there, Edgar working a rear naked choke.Kimbo Slice made a successful debut in one of the upsets on the card. Most hardcore fans such as myself thought that Houston Alexander and his nasty muay thai put him at a clear advantage. Alexander was circling and shuffling throughout the fight. There were moments of big action and exchanges, with Kimbo mostly finding his mark.

In the second round, Kimbo managed to get a decent slam takedown with good ground and pound. Kimbo continued his dominance in the round working his counter punches. Houston Alexander's best round was the third, where he was able to land some big kicks to Kimbo's legs, at one point knocking the former street brawler down. In the end, it was a unanimous decision for Kimbo.In other action former NFL players and TUF 10 castmates Matt Mitrione and Marcus Jones did battle in their official UFC debut. Marcus Jones was able to land a big takedown early and batter Mitrione with ground and pound strikes. However, in the second round Mitrione landed a big right hand to floor Jones, whose striking game still needs work.

Friday, December 4, 2009

Here is Brendan Schaub fighting Johnny Curtis from UWC 4 - Confrontation, which took place on 10/11/08. Brendan, a cast member on TUF 10, has won his first two fights on the show against Demico Rogers and Jon Madsen.

The 4-0 pro fighter played football at the University of Colorado, the practice squad of the Buffalo Bill and the arena league's Utah Blaze. The fight starts at 5:03.

This Saturday Strikeforce will take place at the HP Arena in San Jose, California. The main event will see the return of the extremely entertaining Cung Le as he tangles with powerful brawler Scott Smith. Expect Le to throw kicks from distance to keep Smith at bay.

In a lightweight title fight, Josh Thomson will fight Gilbert Melendez in a rematch of a June 08 match won by Thomson. Josh Thomson hasn't fought since September 2008, and has not defended his title. Gilbert Melendez has stayed active since dropping a decision to Thomson, defeating Mitsuhiro Ishida and Rodrigo Damm via knockout earning an interim 155 pound belt.

In other action, uber grappler and athlete King Mo Lawal will be fighting TUF 2 veteran Mike Whitehead. A win by Lawal could propel him into a fight with Gegard Mousasi or another big name.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

TUF 10's regular season will wrap this Wednesday with a two hour episode featuring four fights. On Saturday, the TUF 10 Finale will take place, with Matt "The Hammer" Hamill and Jon "Bones" Jones headlining.

So far, Roy Nelson and Brendan Schaub from Team Rashad have made the final 4. Darrill Schoonover and Marcus Jones will fight first and James McSweeney will fight Matt Mitrione or an alternate.

Darrill Schoonover, an Army Vet, is 10-0 in his young career with a big victory over BJJ ace and former NFL player Rex Richards in the Shark Fights promotion. Schoonover has good stand-up to go along with his ground game. In his first TUF fight, Schoon peppered Zak Jensen standing, nearly getting a KO, before locking in a triangle choke.Marcus Jones, a former 1st round pick of the Tampa Bay Bucs, is a big guy with huge power. Jones' stand-up is still not refined as he looks like a zombie stalking his prey. However, once the fight gets to the ground, it enters Jones' comfort zone. Against Mike Wessel in the first round of TUF, Jones secured a fast and nasty armbar, almost causing Wessel serious injury.James McSweeney against Matt Mitrione will be a pure stand-up fight if the fight occurs. McSweeney has solid leg kicks that he would use to cut down a big tree like Mitrione. Mitrione took a beating in his fight with Scott Junk, however he has complained quite a bit since the fight.

Monday, November 23, 2009

UFC 106: Griffin v. Ortiz took place on 11/21/09 and featured nine bouts making the broadcast on Spike and PPV. Forrest Griffin won a narrow split decision to push himself closer to a title shot. Josh Koscheck also moved closer to a title shot with a victory over the uber athletic Anthony Johnson.

Forrest Griffin def Tito Ortiz via split dec- Forrest and Tito battled for three rounds in this compelling three round fight. Tito and Forrest fought a close first round, with Forrest controlling the stand-up and Tito managing to get one takedown. In the second, Tito was able to take advantage of a takedown to land some elbows, opening up a cut on Forrest.

Never one to shy away from blood, Forrest came alive in the third round. Tito cardio started to falter, or he felt he was up on the scorecards. Forrest landed punches and kicks at will, winning the third round in convincing fashion. With the win, look for Forrest to fight Antonio Noguiera or Thiago Silva if he beats Rashad Evans.*MMA Blaster readers correctly choose Griffin 44-28.(Forrest Griffin pictured)

Josh Koscheck def Anthony Johnson via sub (RNC) R2, 4:27- The first round saw Anthony Johnson controlling much of the action and defending takedowns. With Koscheck getting up, still on his knees, Johnson threw and elbow and came through with a hand, grazing Koscheck's eye. The round continued with Johnson looking strong.

In the second, a Koscheck open hand punch sunk fingers into Johnson's eye. Johnson appeared shaken, and didn't return to form. Shortly after getting back into action, Koscheck got a takedown and choked out Johnson with a rear naked choke. Koscheck would like to fight number one contender for the 170 pound division, Dan Hardy.

Paulo Thiago def Jacob Volkmann via unanimous dec- Thiago controlled the grappling game and managed to land more strikes to win the decision.

Amir Sadollah def Phil Baroni via unanimous dec- Phil Baroni was able to land some power punches and get a takedown in the first round, but Sadollah dominated the clinch and long distance striking from then on. In the third, Baroni slowed down and Sadollah took advantage, peppering him with strikes and clinch work.

Ben Saunders def Marcus Davis via KO (knees) R1, 3:24- Ben Saunders dominated the fight with the use of his devasting thai clinch. Saunders popped Davis with knees from every direction, eventually sending Davis to the canvas.

Monday, November 16, 2009

It seems Brock Lesnar will be on the shelf for some time following his bacterial infection and fight with mono. When he returns, it will likely be in a fight with an interim title holder, maybe the victor of Shane Carwin versus Cain Velasquez.

Brock Lesnar has been an extremely polarizing fighter since his entrance into K-1 Hero's in a match against Min Soo Kim. Pre-fight, Brock was dressed in a suit and was respectful to notables at the event such as Royce Gracie and Kazushi Sakuraba. Lesnar rained punches on the judo black belt after a patented double leg takedown to finish the fight via TKO.
(Lesnar v. Kim)

The next move for Lesnar was to fight Frank Mir at UFC 81. In the fight, Lesnar dominated Mir with a flush overhand right that sent Mir tumbling to the canvas. After an questionable punch to the back of the head area and ill-advised stand-up by Steve Mazzagati, Mir found his way to a knee bar to win the fight.
(Lesnar v. Mir I)

In his third fight, "Krazy Horse" Heath Herring stood in Lesnar's way. Lesnar used lightening quick takedowns, the clinch, and vicious ground and pound. He had Herring's back, throwing nasty punches to the face of Herring.
(Heath Herring post fight)

UFC Hall of Famer and all around legend Randy Couture was Lesnar's next fight. Lesnar's wrestling was finally tested, as Randy was able to fend off a couple takedown attempts, scramble and clinch against the behemoth. Lesnar was just too strong, as he displayed his boxing skills in a punch that clipped Couture behind the head. As Couture went to the canvas, Lesnar followed and unleashed a serious fury of ground and pound.
(Lesnar throwing a punch at Couture)

In his last bout, Lesnar against used a ground and pound assault and flawless takedowns to smother Frank Mir. Mir was unable to use his submission skills as Lesnar pinned his arm back and displayed nasty short range power with his punches. With revenge in his hands, Brock flipped a switch, throwing the double bird, disrespecting fans. Lesnar has since apologized at the UFC 100 post fight press conference.
(Lesnar v. Mir II)

Lesnar must draw on his NCAA wrestling background, not the WWE antics. He can be one of the most dominant heavyweights in history. He needs to lose the antics and be respectful of his opponents and the sport of mixed martial arts.
(NCAA Champ)
(Lesnar ready to slam Hulk Hogan)
(Lesnar on the Vikings)

Monday, November 9, 2009

Strikeforce Chicago took place this past Saturday at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. The event had plenty of excellent fights, featuring submissions, exciting grappling displays and the worlds greatest scoring a KO.

Fedor Emelianenko def Brett Rogers via TKO (punches) R2, 1:48- This showstopper was by far the craziest fight I have ever seen. As soon as Fedor appeared the audience went nuts. During the first round, Rogers was able to get a straight jab in on Fedor, opening a large gash above his nose.

Despite blood pouring from his nose, Fedor was the aggressor throughout the fight. Fedor dominated transitions, attempting submissions and landing shots after takedowns. In the second round, Fedor landed a huge overhand right crumpling Rogers to the canvas. As he laid on the ground, Fedor pounced and the fight was called.

The legend of Fedor is only growing, as the replay showed a clean power right hand that landed to the face of Brett Rogers sending him to another planet. With the win, Fedor has reeled off 8 straight stoppage wins. If you count the TK illegal cut as a loss, Fedor has 27 straight victories. (Fedor Emelianenko pictured)

Friday, November 6, 2009

In his past three fights, Chuck "The Reverend" Grigsby has been traveling across the globe fighting for the M-1: Challenge promotion. I was able to catch up with and ask some questions about his recent mixed martial arts bouts.MMA Blaster: Where are you training right now?

I primarily train at the Des Moines Mixed Martial Arts Academy run by Anthony Porcelli. I train my kickboxing with Kevin Veasly and Cardell James, and when I have the opportunity, I like to also work on my Jiu Jitsu at Des Moines Jiu Jitsu Academy. I train with some of the best submission wrestlers and Jiu Jitsu guys in Iowa.MMA Blaster: Since the last time we talked, you defeated Rob MacDonald from The Ultimate Fighter show, how did that fight play out?

It was a real quick fight. I think felt like it was over in 7 seconds and I enjoyed that. I am very fortunate to get a win in the manner that I did, you don’t get many fights like that.

MMA Blaster: What led you to the M-1 promotion?

I have always wanted to fight internationally. I think that is the best option for me and my style of fighting. I played pro basketball overseas after college for a few seasons. My manager Reed Wallace has many connections internationally and M-1 was the best option.

MMA Blaster: What was it like fighting in Bulgaria for your first M-1 fight?

Bulgaria was wild! There were so many things outside of the actual fight that I had to consider, but outside of that extra stuff, I just assumed it would be like any other fight. I loved the experience, especially getting a win over an Olympic level wrestler and fighter. They displayed good sportsmanship and were good to us, despite our team shutting them out.

MMA Blaster: How did the fight play out against Atanas Dzhambazov? What type of fighting background did he have?

His style was Sambo. He was an extremely strong individual and gave me some unique challenges during the fight. It didn’t help that I pulled my hamstring in the first 30 seconds of the fight either. He was really tough, it was very good win for me.

MMA Blaster: What are the fans like in the M-1 events?

They are different in each different country. In Bulgaria they were much like American fans being rowdy and into the fights. In Holland the fans were very laid back and nonchalant, but you can tell they were well educated in MMA. The Russian fans were really into it and love their Russian fighters, it is a tough team to fight against.

MMA Blaster: What is it like fighting on Team USA East?

I am very proud to be a part of the championship team, it was a lot of work and we were never considered the favorites. That made it even that much more satisfying. I enjoyed seeing fighters from all over the country, with all the different skill sets and styles coming together for one common goal, Team USA East winning. The bond with your teammates is much like the bonds you develop with the guys you train with regularly. The experience of traveling out of the country to fight and going to the finals was awesome. M-1 is like the World Cup or Olympics of MMA.(Team USA East Pictured)

MMA Blaster: In your second fight you fought at heavyweight right? What happened in the fight with Jessie Gibbs? How much weight were you giving up?

Yes, that fight was at heavyweight. He was too big for me honestly. I think he had like 40 pounds on me. I won’t fight at HW again unless it a opponent I can’t turn down. If anything I might look at the 185 division, but I doubt that. Weight cutting can be hard and I didn’t want it to be an issue. Traveling for that many hours while trying to cut weight can be really brutal if you don't have an organized weight cutting system.

MMA Blaster: How was the fight against Spencer Hooker? Did you look at any of his tape, I saw he has some quality victories?

He is probably the most skilled heavyweight in the M-1 Challenge. That is why I fought him because I wanted to go against the grain and challenge myself. It was a good fight and very technical. I think if we were fighting in neutral territory the fight would have gone into the 3rd round where I would have had another round to break him down, or visa versa. There was no quitting in that fight.

I knew he was a Jujitsu guy, so I knew I had the advantage in stand-up. It seems that most fighters see me a pure stand-up fighter, so they think I’m a good match up for them if they are a wrestler or submission fighter. He was tough and had no quit in him. He took some really good shots from me and was still standing, not many guys can say that. It was awesome fight.

MMA Blaster: What was it like fighting in Russia?

The Russian people were really open to Americans and our culture. Americans have a lot of misconceptions about the Russians. I would like to take my family over to visit someday.

MMA Blaster: What sort of preparations do you have to make before fighting oversees?

I have to be literally fight ready on the day I leave the United States in order to combat the hurdles of cutting weight and training. Usually the time I am overseas I focus on doing light cardio and technique and pray that weigh-in's come faster than they ever do!

MMA Blaster: Any shout outs?

I am able to unveil my family who are my heart and soul: Xander, Sara, Berniece, Jaunette, Carrie, Mannie and all of the rest of the crew. Also want to say thanks to my manager Reed Wallace of White Chocolate Management, training partners and coaches. I couldn’t do it without cha!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

I was able to catch up with up and coming MMA fighter Shah Bobonis last weekend. Shah is coming off of a big victory in Mexico's Combate Extremo promotion that earned him their 145 pound featherweight championship.

MMA Blaster: How did you end up fighting for Combate Extremo?

I ended up fighting for Combate Extremo because one of the partners in the company spends a lot of time Orlando. He happened to see me competing at a NAGA grappling tournament that I won. He asked if I would participate in a Super Fight at his next grappling event. From there, he started looking me up and watched some video and liked the way I fought. After my last two wins we had a solid relationship and he asked if I wanted to fight for his 145lbs title.

MMA Blaster: Does your experience fighting in Costa Rica transfer over to fighting in Mexico?

Fighting in Costa Rica early on in my career was key in feeling comfortable fighting for this title. I was accustomed to the travel and hostile crowd so it didn’t feel like my first Rodeo.

MMA Blaster: What are the MMA fans like in Mexico?

The MMA fans in Mexico were every bit as passionate as the fans in Costa Rica. They called me every name in the book as I walked out to the ring which I expected as I was fighting their countrymen. The difference was after the fight the Mexican fans were very friendly.

MMA Blaster: What did you know about Carlos Monzon before the fight?

I had seen tape on Monzon and the first thing I noticed was that he is huge for a 145 pounder. He was a Sean Sherk look alike. His Muay Thai was good and he was very aggressive. When Monzon was on the ground he only looked to ground and pound, never too worried about passing guard or hunting for subs. His wrestling did not look overwhelming, it just seemed he was a very good athlete and naturally hard to take down.

MMA Blaster: What was your plan going into this fight?

The game plan was to take him into deep water. From the few fights that I watched he seemed to come out guns blazing and walk through guys. I knew if I could bare the brunt of the early storm I would be fine.

MMA Blaster: How did the fight play out?

The fight ended up being a lot shorter than I thought. My reach was giving him problems which led him to lung in and give up a easy double leg take down. I don’t think he was used to being on his back. Trying to get back to his feet he went to all fours as he was trying to get up and I jumped into a guillotine.

MMA Blaster: What sort of response did you get from the crowd?

After the fight they were a lot more receptive to an American holding a belt in their country’s biggest MMA show than they were before the fight. The crowd was great, probably about 3,000 people. I spent an hour after the fight taking pictures with the fans and my new belt.MMA Blaster: I've heard you are pretty busy over the next couple months, where are you fighting?

I’m working on a fight in Puerto Rico Nov 20th for an upstart promotion called Maxximo Fighting Championships. It isn’t for a belt, but hopefully next time I travel to Puerto Rico I’ll get a shot. They have had some great fighters on their show already such as WEC vet Eric Schambari and Whisper Goodman.

In December, I’m back in Mexico to defend my title. I was told by the promoter my first title defense will be against another one of Mexico’s best fighters. I forget his real name, but his nickname is El Gato (the cat). I’ve seen tape on him and he is a very skilled guy. That will be my last fight at 145 pounds. Next year I want to fight some really big names at 135 pounds.

MMA Blaster: What are your goals in MMA at this point?

Goals include fighting for more titles and by the end of next year fighting for a huge promotion WEC, Dream, Sengoku, Strikeforce, whatever! I would love to fight in Japan! My dream match-up would be standing up and having a war with Hiroyuki Takaya. In the WEC I’d like to fight a guy like Manny Tapia. I like the way he fights stand up guy who brings it. It would make for a exciting fight.

By the end of next year I think I’ll be ready to fight anyone in the world at 135 and give them a run. My last three fights have been with guys who usually fight at 155. Two of the fights were at a catch weight of 150 pounds. The combined record of my last three opponents is 16-4. I got a sub in less than 2 min, a decision win, and a split decision loss that many feel I won. I think at 135 I can be a force!

MMA Blaster: How did the fight with Rudy Tujillo go in the XFC?

The fight with Ray Trujillo was really disappointing. I totally dominated the first round, I’ll give him the second round, and I feel there is no way he won the third. During the fight I swept him, had twice as many take downs, had his back and had him mounted several times. He had maybe two take downs, but never passed my guard and never caused any damage. But, I should have finished the fight, if you let it go to the judges in MMA you never know what you will get. I lost a split decision.

MMA Blaster: How did your fight with Dustin Blake go in Kansas?

The fight with Dustin Blake was tough but I feel I won every round. He was the hometown favorite. It was much like fighting in Mexico or Costa Rica. I guess I play the bad guy well. I won the split decision. The one judge that gave the fight to Blake is a Witchita native, go figure. But it was a huge win for me!

MMA Blaster: Who are you training with now?

I’m back in Miami training with the Avellan brothers at the Freestyle Fighting Academy. The only school on Earth that can say they have four ADCC vets teaching classes. My coaches are Marcos, David and Rima Avellan, Enricco Cocco and Efrain Ruiz.

As the episode kicks off, we again see the fight between Junk and Mitrione. While Junk lost, Mitrione is beat up as well. Mitrione states that it was the hardest he had ever been hit before and that he felt awful. Junk is sporting a massive shiner, and reports have surfaced that his eye that was poked required surgery.

Rampage does his best to make up with Darrill Schoonover, but again pushes his buttons by grabbing his chest. Darrill stands up to Rampage again, and states that he wanted to put Rampage's head into a cage post, but was lucky his teammates were there.

As the fight is a quick one, as Jones and Wessel come out and measure eachother up. After Wessel tries to get in close and go for a body lock, Jones counters and goes to the ground. From there, Jones looks for a kimura, then to get Wessel's back. As Wessel reverses, Jones goes for an armbar and nearly breaks Wessel's arm before he verbally quits.(Marcus Jones pictured)

With the win, Team Rampage scores its first victory and winds up 1-7 in the first round. With the first round complete, the fighters are called in to be asked who they want to fight. Most fighters ask for Matt Mitrione or Darrill. Roy Nelson describes every fighters strengths and weaknesses and says it doesn't matter.

MMA Blaster has enjoyed 2 great years of success and over 150,000 hits. Everyone from the United States, Canada, Brazil, Germany, Mexico, Sweden, France, United Kingdom, Australia and everyone else in between thanks for visiting. Here are some random cool MMA pics:

Monday, November 2, 2009

Forrest faced off with Rampage in TUF 7, hyping up a championship bout between the two at UFC 86. In this video Forrest shows off his net gun skills. Forrest fights Tito Ortiz at UFC 106. Pretty sure a TUF 7 marathon on Spike is in the near future.

Sunday, November 1, 2009

UFC 106 takes place on Saturday, November 21st in Las Vegas, Nevada with Forrest Griffin and Tito Ortiz headlining. No titles will be on the line, so expect 6 to 7 fights to make the broadcast. In addition, at least two fights will make a Spike broadcast proceeding the pay per view.

Tito Ortiz (15-6-1, 14-6-1 UFC) is returning to action after being on the shelf since his May 8, 2008 decision loss to Lyoto Machida and back surgery. His opponent, Forrest Griffin, is returning from a devasting KO loss to Anderson Silva in August. Forrest rose to fame with his TUF 1 victory over Stephen Bonnar and his LHW title victory over Rampage Jackson.(Forrest Griffin pictured)

Look for Forrest to press the action and use his boxing to keep Tito at a distance. Tito will look to close the distance and get in the clinch. Once there, Tito will look for a takedown to utilize his ground and pound. Tito won the 205 pound belt with a victory over Wanderlei Silva at UFC 25. He defended 5 times, including wins over Evan Tanner, Yuki Kondo and Vladimir Matyushenko.(Tito Ortiz pictured)

Here is Marcus Jones against Eddie Boza which took place on 11/10/07 for the RFC promotion in Tampa Bay, Florida. Marcus Jones is a former 1st round draft pick for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1996 and spent 6 years in the NFL. The defensive lineman's best season was 2000, when he had 13 sacks. He was a member of The Ultimate Fighter season 10.

Jones' fight career was over after a loss in the TUF 10 Finale to Matt Mitrione. Jones won his first 2 bouts of the TUF tournament by submitting Mike Wessell and TKO'ing Darrill Schoonover.

On Saturday, November 7th, the number 1 MMA fighter of all-time Fedor Emelianenko will be fighting rising top 10 heavyweight Brett Rogers. Rounding out the card is a 185 pound title fight between Jake Shields and Jason "Mayhem" Miller, Gegard Mousasi, Fabricio Werdum and Jeff Curran. The card unfolds at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois and will be broadcast live on CBS.

Fedor Emelianenko vs. Brett Rogers- Finally we get to see Fedor fight after he was MIA from MMA action since a KO win over Andrei Arlovski in January. Also, Brett Rogers will be returning since his June beatdown of the aforementioned Arlovski.

Fedor (30-1) is an absolute beast, dismantling former UFC champs, massive brawlers and NCAA champs at ease. He owns wins over a staggering group of fighters including everyone from Antonio Nogueira, Tim Sylvia, Mark Coleman, Matt Lindland, Kevin Randleman and Ricardo Arona.

Look for Fedor to bring Rogers to the mat and take him to school with his amazing grappling aresenol. If the fight stays standing, I would expect Fedor to look to use his quickness against Rogers power punching.(Fedor Emelianenko pictured)

Brett Rogers (10-0) is a rising star in the mixed martial arts world. He started his career training working full-time in Sam's Club's tire department and training in a 5 car garage. He has awesome power, standing 6'5" and weighing 265+ pounds. Expect Rogers to keep the fight standing, hunting for a knockout.

During his brief MMA career, Rogers has finished every fight with 9 TKO/KO's and 1 submission, albeit via a punches. Besides Arlovski, Rogers has taken out James Thompson, Jon Murphy and Ron "Abongo" Humphrey.(Brett Rogers pictured)

Jason "Mayhem" Miller vs. Jake Shields- After the extremely entertaining Cung Le decided to vanquish his middleweight belt, Strikeforce has handed the title shot to two of the best American fighters outside the UFC. The grappling wizards will be fighting five rounds to determine the new champ.

Mayhem Miller (22-6) has used his "unique" personality to host the show Bully Beatdown and launch various other endevors. With an underrated submission game, Miller will look to defend Shields submission attempts while looking to punish the jiu-jitsu blackbelt.

Miller has fought in Hawaii, Japan and the continental US during his long career, with wins over Kala Hose, Robbie Lawler, Niko Vitale, Tim Kennedy and Ron Jhun.(Mayhem Miller pictured)

Jake Shields (23-4) was the first and only Elite XC 170 pound champ, a Shooto champ and two time Rumble on the Rock tournament champ. He is currently riding a 12 fight win streak. Shields grappling has looked flawless during that stretch. Expect Shields to look for takedowns early and often, and then try for a submission.

Shields won the 170 pound Elite XC belt over Nick Thompson and defended against Paul Daley. He would then beat Robbie Lawler at a 182 catch weight in his first Strikeforce fight. Shields has other career victories over Carlos Condit, Mike Pyle and Dave Menne.(Jake Shields pictured)

Gegard Mousasi vs. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou- Gegard Mousasi (26-2), the Strikeforce 205 pound champion, will be taking on the uber athletic Sokoudjou in this non-title match. Expect Mousasi to use his precision kickboxing to neutralize Sokodjou's power. Mousasi is on a 13 fight win streak with victories over Babalu Sobral, Melvin Manhoef, Denis Kang and Jacare.

Antonio Silva vs. Fabricio Werdum- The winner of this heavyweight clash will find himself in a potential showdown with the winner of Fedor v. Rogers. Both fighters are excellent grapplers, and this fight will likely be determined on the ground. Werdum is coming of a 2009 ADCC HW championship.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

This episode of TUF focused on former NFL player Matt Mitrione as he struggles with living in the isolation that is the ultimate fighter house. Matt has lost his temper, tried to play mind games with teammates, and looked completely out of focus.

With Matt acting crazy and the fighters bored, Wes Sims seems to be the guy to liven things up. While clad in a massive black gi, the 6'10" Sims looked to scale the wall as a ninja, and sneak up on Mitrione as he shot some hoops alone. As Sims crept closer, he began hiding in the trees. The secrecy continued until he was right up on Mitrione. Hilarious.

Rampage and Rashad continued to bicker at each other, mocking the KO's that each has suffered in their superb careers. The animosity seems to boil over to practice sessions.

The final fights are announced as Mitrione will fight Scott Junk. That leaves Marcus Jones fighting Mike Wessell in the final fight. In a weird move, Mitrione drops Junk a note, saying that Wessell was scared to fight him. Why did Mitrione completely throw Wessell under the bus? Maybe just trying to play mind games.

As the fight between Junk and Mitrione starts, Mitrione clearly has the advantage in size and reach. Miotrone landing jabs and kicks with effectiveness. The smaller Junk tries to throw a kick, and a Mitrione jab lands square in Junks face. Apparently, Junk was poked in the eye.

Despite having his eyelid inside out, he is peppered by Mitrione. Junk tries to kick, but that is caught by Mitrione who punches Junk again and throws him down. Junk tries for a desperate single and is teed off on by Junk. Near the end of the round, Junk manages a brief flurry.

In the second, Junk manages a takedown, but Mitrione keeps throwing punches. Both fighters run out of gas, barely able to throw punches as they battle until the end of the second. Two judges score it for Mitrione, one scores it a draw.

With the win it is now 7-0 for Rashad. Rampage lives up to his nickname, destroying a door in the gym that is apparently made out of cardboard and toothpicks.(Matt Mitrione on the Vikings)

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

I waited to release my review of this event until I watched the Lyoto Machida versus Shogun Rua fight again. After five lackluster but technically impressive fight was won by Lyoto Machida on all three score cards. However, the viewing audience, Joe Rogaine and myself all saw it for Shogun.

Here are the results:

Lyoto Machida def Shogun Rua via unanimous dec- This title fight has turned controversial following all three judges awarding the fight to champion Lyoto Machida with 48-47. Throughout the fight Shogun seemed to land hard leg and body kicks. Machida seemed to back peddle and throw punches.

The body and leg kicks thrown by the more aggressive Rua led to me believing he had won the 1st, 4th and 5th rounds. Rua continually controlled where the fight to place and was consistently showing better aggression. Machida did gets some nice punces in at times, but seemed to never get into rhythem.

Dana White has indicated both fighters have agreed to an immediate rematch. Unfortunately, Machida suffered a laceration to his lip and was suspended without contact for 60 days. Look for the fight to possibly take place in February.*MMA Blaster readers correctly choose Machida 90-27

Cain Velasquez def Ben Rothwell via TKO (punches) R2, 0:58- Cain Velasquez bullied the larger Ben Rothwell, eventually knocking him senseless in the second round. Velasquez dominated Rothwell with his superior wrestling and power punching from the ground.

The victory would have seemed to earn Cain a title shot. However, champ Brock Lesnar suffered an illness pushing back his fight with Shane Carwin. It appears Velasquez could fight Junior Dos Santos next.

Joe Stevenson def Spencer Fisher via TKO (elbows) R1, 4:03- Joe Stevenson continues his rise back up to the top of his game since joining Team Jackson. The submission grappler knew his best shot at victory would be to get the fight to the ground. Fisher was able to deny Stevenson's takedowns for a little while before succeeding.

Once the fight was on the ground, Stevenson was able to get Fisher's arm trapped in a crucifix, reminiscant of the Roy Nelson versus Kimbo fight. Elbows came in bunches and the ref was forced to stop the fight.(Joe Stevenson pictured)

Anthony Johnson def Yoshiyuki Yoshida via KO (punch) R1, 0:41- Anthony Johnson sacrificed some pay for missing weight in this contest, but he didn't sacrifice his performance. Johnson briefly attempted to clinch, backed out and crushed Yoshida with a right hand knocking him into another universe and ending the fight.

Pat Barry def Antoni Hardonk by TKO (punches) R2, 2:30- In what turned out to be the fight of the night, Pat Barry and Antoni Hardonk threw down in an absolute battle. Hardonk started the action landing some big leg kicks and big punches. Barry looked to use his quickness, before Barry then was struck deep in the eye by Hardonk.

After a brief injury time out, Barry began to find his range with straight punches. Barry dropped Hardonk with a jab, landing in side mount dropping additional punishment. In the second round, Barry's speed was too much for Hardonk as he dropped him with straight punches before the finisher, a right hand to Hardonk's temple.*Barry wins Fight of the Night and KO of the Night Bonus(Pat Barry pictured)

Stefan Struve def Chase Gormley via sub (triangle) R1, 4:04- After the gigantic Struve landed some big kicks, Gormley worked the fight to the ground. From there, the two attempted leg locks. After Struve got top position he worked for a triangle and leaned to his back, getting Gormley to succumb to the choke.*Struve wins Submission of the Night Bonus

Thursday, October 22, 2009

In the sixth episode of The Ultimate Fighter, Team Rashad's Darrill Schoonover fights Team Rampage's Zak Jensen. Schoonover (10-0) is a long time martial artist that was active in the Army for two years. Zak Jensen (7-3) is a former Northern Illinois football player and wrestler.

They show a healthy dose of footage of the fighters picking on Zak Jensen, whom Kimbo nicknames "Linderman." Wes Sims decides to craft a betting pool, with fighters picking dates on when he would break down mentally. Zak seems to take a beating in practice at well, finally doing well in the last practice.

Darrill is first shown drinking before practice and then the coaches talking to him about not drinking. Darrill said after the show he actually only drank the first two days, and he didn't fight till the 3rd week. Darrill is a pretty interesting characters, discussing tattoo's he got while drunk.

At practice, Rampage again gets at Darrill, calling him his usual nickname and trying to get under his skin. Darrill gets in Rampages face challenging him to fight at 205, and later saying in the confessional he would have headbutted Rampage, because anything goes in a street fight.

The fight gets off to a bang, as both fighter find their range and Darrill closes in. After getting in a clinch, Darrill unloads multiple knees into Jensen's midsection. As they broke free, Darrill let his hands fly as Jensen swung wildly and Darrill tagged him several times with straight punches.

While dazed, Jensen went for a double leg and eventually got a takedown. Darrill got his right leg up, and instead of defending the upcoming triangle, decided to throw hammerfists. Schoonover worked the triangle deeper as Jensen threw more hammerfists. Eventually, Jensen was choked out and became unresponsive.

With the win, Team Rashad now has 6 straight victories. Rampage's photo exaggerating Team Rashad was met with laughs.(Darrill Schoonover pictured)

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

The 5th episode of The Ultimate Fighter featured a short and sweet fight to determine yet another 2nd round qualifier. In the elimination bout were UFC veteran Wes Sims (22-2) against the 22 year old Justin Wren (6-1).

In the start of the episode, Wes "Murdock" Sims is seen giving Zak Jensen a hard time. Jensen has become sort of a punching bag this season. The former Northern Illinois football player takes all the jokes in stride. Until a practice clip is shown of Sims triangle choking Jensen out in practice.

Matt Miotrone meanwhile again is drawing attention to himself. Instead of calling out all the proposed fight match-ups, Miotrone now is nursing a shoulder injury. After one practice, the former NFL lineman asked coach Rashad if he could get a cortisone shot. Rashad vehemently denied. Miotrone's injury waxes and wanes as he skips certain practices.

Justin Wren reveals that he is one of the younger participants and comes from a Greco Roman wrestling background. He trains out of TUF 4 winner Travis Lutter's gym in Texas. Wes Sims has many fights under his belt including two with Frank Mir. Sims trains out of Team Hammerhouse, which is led by NCAA champion wrestlers and former UFC champs Mark Coleman and Kevin Randleman.

The fight is short and sweet. After a couple ranging jabs land by Sims, Wren works him against the fence. After a denied takedown attempt the fighters break. Wren manages his way back into Sims range, easily gets a body lock takedown and gets into side mount.

From there, Wren locks in a tight arm triangle choke. With Sims arm trapped he refuses to tap. In seconds, ref Herb Dean grabs his free arm. It appears to have life left, but on the second try he is gone. Sims was choked unconscious, but snaps to pretty fast.(Justin Wren pictured)

Friday, October 9, 2009

Here are the results of the 2009 Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Grappling tournament results. The tournament is regarded as the pinnacle of no-gi grappling events. This years tournament was held in Barcelona, Spain.

The talk of the tournament was Braulio Estima who captured the absolute division and under 88KG crowns. Braulio joins Mario Sperry, Mark Kerr, Ricardo Arona and Roger Gracie as the only grapplers to win their weight division and the absolute division in the same year.

Many MMA stars placed high in this years event. TUF 8 Runner-up Vinny Magalhaes took 3rd in the under 99KG division and the absolute division with several slick submissions. Recent UFC cast-off Fabricio Werdum won the over 99KG division, while UFC vet Jeff Monson took 3rd. On the women's side, Strikeforce Women's Champ Christiane "Cyborg" Santos took 3rd in the over 60KG division.

Thursday, October 8, 2009

This episode of The Ultimate Fighter featured the diverging coaching styles of Rampage Jackson and Rashad Evans as they attempt to mold their fighters. We get a good look at the training preparations, strategies and mental aspect of the fight game.

Early on in the show, it is clear that Kimbo Slice would love another shot to get back in the octogan. All it really takes is someone getting hurt for him to come back. Cue in "Big" Marcus Jones sweating like crazy and almost passing out and you could see Kimbo might just have the chance to come back.

That would leave Darrill Schoonover and Mike Wessell to fight either Wes Sims or Zak Jensen. Justin Wren comes back to the room and lets Rashad know that Scott is his best friend in the house and training partner before the show, Rashad takes that into consideration. Obviously, if someone on Rashad's team lost, those picks would go out the window.

When Wren arrives back in his room after training, mysteriously Scott Junk inquires about Justin fighting him. Apparently Matt Miotrone had clued him into all the fight picks that Rashad and the coaches had considered. While Miotrone apologizes for his blunder, Jon Madsen and eventually Rashad wonder if Miotrone is trying to avoid a fight with Marcus Jones.

The match-up is made of Brendan Schaub versus Demico Rogers. During training, Brendan is instructed to use the jab that got him a boxing Gold Gloves championship. Rogers is instructed to take Schaub down and pound him out. Each fighter is hyped up, but Travis Whitman really gets into Schaubs ear, telling him he is the best ever. It is obvious that the mental aspect of the fight game is critical to success in the TUF tournament.

As the fight starts, Brendan looks to use his jab. Demico quickly attempts a couple takedowns which are denied. However, Demico is able to eventually get the takedown. Demico doesn't do much in guard until the ref asks for action. From there, Demico landed a couple big elbows. He stood up and dropped a little more punishment down on Schaub.

With Demico back in guard, he is instructed to pass, and gets in half guard. As soon as Demico rested, Schaub bucked him off and got top position. After a brief scramble, Schaub locked in an anaconda choke for the win near the end of the first round.(Brendan Schaub pictured)

Thursday, October 1, 2009

The latest episode of TUF 10 - Heavyweights featured a fight between youtube legend Kimbo Slice and Roy "Big Country" Nelson. The episode featured a nice mix of training and fight footage.

In the lead-in to the fight, Kimbo's training mainly focused on how to get up, how to get off his back and what he would do to get off the ground. Unfortunately for Rampage, he didn't know who Roy Nelson was during evaluations. Now, I'm guessing Rampage has an idea. It seemed Team Rampage coach Tiki Ghosen has his hands full.

Rashad had good things to say about Roy Nelson, who he described as an independent fighter. Roy trains often out of his garage, is self-managed and procures his own sponsorships. At the house, one scene featured Team Rashad intently listening to Roy Nelson talk about a crucifix he liked to use. With the arm trapped, and in half guard, you rain down punches.

Meanwhile, Rashad Evans friend and training parter Keith Jardine showed up. While Rampage was initially cordial to Jardine, Rashad had to start talking trash. That left Rampage bringing out the bad breath jokes and eventually getting into it with Team Rashad fighter James McSweeney.

The fight itself played out how many thought it would. In the first round, the two fighters went through a feeling out process before Nelson got Kimbo up against the cage. He used position to eventually get a trip takedown and get mount. With not much going in mount, Nelson looked for the crucifix, trapped the arm, and began to punch Kimbo's head. With not much damage done, the round ended.

In the second, Kimbo came out firing. He clipped Roy with a couple decent punches, but when he tried a knee, Nelson took advantage. With a knee up, Nelson took Kimbo to the mat again. From there, Nelson got in half-guard and began punching Kimbo again. Ref Herb Dean was forced to stop the fight.

After the fight, the rotund Roy Nelson asked Dana White for a Whopper as he celebrated the victory. While Kimbo felt bad for the loss, he knew he would learn from the experience.(Roy Nelson pictured)

Advertising

Please Follow

UFC, Bellator, One FC, WSOF, M-1, Deep, RFA, Titan FC & more!

MMA Blaster will use all facets of the internet to enhance the MMA experience. Your comments are appreciated. **If you are a fighter or fight promotion looking for interviews regarding an upcoming fight send an email to mmablaster@gmail.com.

Custom MMA Blaster Archive Search

Featured Post

I was able to catch up with Midwest Cage Championship and Victory Cage Championship's 205 pound champ Chuck "The Reverend" Gri...

LEGAL NOTICE

**All text and ideas in this blog are owned by the creator of MMA Blaster. All photographs are believed to be in the public domain as they are available freely on the internet and used incidentally to the story. Some photos were taken by MMA Blaster. All videos are hosted by youtube and believed to be in the public domain.

Per our European visitors, please be advised that this site is a Blogger Google site equipped with Google Adsense and Google Analytics. Please see Blogger's notice for more information regarding consent and cookies. The reason I have Google Analytics is to see what content is getting views to better judge what content to highlight on the front page.